Bangladesh: National Identity Card (NIC), including requirements and procedures to obtain; purpose and uses of the card; appearance and security features (2017-January 2020)
Information on the NIC was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
1. NIC
The website of the Bangladesh Election Commission indicates that the NIC [also called NID] is issued to Bangladeshi citizens by the Bangladesh Election Commission (Bangladesh n.d.a). The NIC is valid for 15 years (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.32; Bangladesh n.d.b) and is issued to citizens over 18 (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.32). The National Identity Registration Act, 2010 (Act III of 2010) indicates that "[e]very citizen who is eligible to be a voter under the Electoral Enrollment Act, 2009 (Act No. VI of 2009) shall have the right to obtain a national identity card of the prescribed type in the prescribed manner and subject to payment of fees" (Bangladesh 2010, Sec. 5). The same act indicates that the "'National Identification Number (NID)' means the identification number given by the Commission in a national identity card" (Bangladesh 2010, Sec. 2(3)).
1.1 Description and Purpose
According to a country information report on Bangladesh by Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), NICs "are required to complete a wide range of transactions, including voting, banking, obtaining a passport, and purchasing property or other assets" (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.32). According to the website Identity-Cards.net, a research initiative run under the New Transparency Project which involved universities including Queen's University and the University of Victoria, and was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Identity-Cards.net n.d.), the NIC is also required to obtain a driver's license (Identity-Cards.net 13 Aug. 2016).
Identity-Cards.net also indicates that the following information appears on the NIC: ID number, photo, name, sex, date and place of birth, nationality, address, fingerprint, date of issue, blood type, and signature (Identity-Cards.net 13 Aug. 2016). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
1.2 Requirements and Procedures to Obtain a NIC
The website of the Bangladesh Election Commission indicates the following requirements to obtain a NIC:
Every citizen who is eligible to be a voter under the Electoral Roll Act, 2009 shall have the right to obtain, in the prescribed manner and subject to payment of prescribed fees, a National Identity Card of the prescribed class. Each citizen
shall be issued with only one National Identity Card by [the] Bangladesh Election Commission. Every citizen shall get his or her identity registered to obtain the National Identity Card.
A person should have the following qualifications to be registered as a voter according to Article 122 of the Constitution of the People[']s Republic of Bangladesh and Section 7 of Electoral Rolls Act 2009:
- Is a citizen of Bangladesh;
- Is not less than eighteen years of age;
- Does not stand declared by a competent court to be [of] unsound mind; and
- Is or is deemed to a resident of an electoral area. (Bangladesh n.d.a)
The Australian DFAT's 2019 report on Bangladesh states the following requirements:
To obtain a NIC, applicants must provide their electoral roll serial number, personal particulars (parents’ names, date of birth and residential address), thumbprints, photograph, and signature. The BEC [Bangladesh Election Commission] crosschecks these details against applicants’ electoral roll details. Applicants can provide proof of residence using a range of official documents, including drivers' licences and utility bills. Cardholders are not required to update their residential addresses should they change residence. (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.32)
The Bangladesh Election Commission indicates that the following procedure is followed to obtain a NIC:
Data collection and integration take[s] place [during] two phases. A Data Collection is assigned to 300-400 voter[s]. Data Collection collect voter data and incorporate them into the prescribed Registration Forms. During the household visit, Data [C]ollection complete, or assist to complete, the registration forms. After completion of voter registration form, the voters are given a slip to come to the registration centers on the designated day for photographs and data entry. Voters attend the registration centers at the appointed time. Before approaching the data entry operator, the voter is verified by the concerned Data Collection and Local Government representative for correctness.
[The] Data Entry Operator takes photo[s], fingerprints and uploads voter data into [a] laptop computer. Special arrangement is made to take the photographs and fingerprint[s] of the disabled, sick and aged person at home. At the field registration center, Data Entry teams perform data entry. Thereafter, the teams return to the Server Stations at Upazila and upload data to the server.
Once registration of a location is closed, proof-reading is done which is followed by biometric matching to trace, and terminate, multiple registrations by an individual voter in different locations. Then printing of draft voter list is done and the same is published for the voters to see and lodge their claims and objections for inclusion/deletion/corrections of errors within 15 days. Final list was printed having updated the voter database incorporating the corrections and National Identity Cards are prepared and distributed.
Any qualified person whose name does not appear on voter list may apply in prescribed form to the District Election Officer for inclusion in the list. (Bangladesh n.d.a)
Sources indicate that photos, fingerprints and iris scans are collected prior to the issuance of NICs in Bangladesh (bdnews.com 6 Dec. 2019) and abroad (bdnews24.com 30 Oct. 2019; The Financial Express 6 Nov. 2019).
Concerning the renewal of the NIC, the Bangladesh Election Commission states the following:
Every citizen shall have to make, at least six months before the expiry of the validity of a National Identity Card, an application for Re-Registration thereof to the Commission in the prescribed manner and subject to payment of prescribed fees. Upon receiving an application the Election Commission shall Re-Register the National Identity Card within a prescribed time and in the prescribed manner. (Bangladesh n.d.b)
2. Smart NIC
According to sources, a "smart NIC" was introduced in October 2016 (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.33; Business Standard 2 Oct. 2016; Financial Express 1 Oct. 2016). Australia's DFAT indicates that
[t]he purpose of the smart NIC was to prevent fraud, which was previously endemic. The BEC is currently in the process of distributing smart NICS nationwide. This process remains ongoing, and many older National Identity Cards without security features are reportedly still in use. (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, para. 5.33)
According to the New Delhi-based newspaper The Business Standard, "[i]n 2016, the EC started the distribution smart NID cards instead of laminated ones to the voters, but over 104 million voters are yet to get the smart cards" (The Business Standard 2 Dec. 2019). According to bdnews24.com, a Bangladesh-based electronic newspaper, 10.05 million people had received smart NIDs by September 2017, out of an electorate of over 100 million (bdnews24.com 21 Sept. 2017).
On 6 November 2019, the Financial Express, a Bangladesh-based newspaper, reported that the Bangladesh Election Commission launched online registration for expatriate Bangladeshis to obtain NICs. On 19 November 2019, the same source reported that the online registration service for expatriate Bangladeshis started in Malaysia and expanded to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (The Financial Express 19 Nov. 2019). According to the New Nation, a Dhaka-based newspaper, in addition to Malaysia and the UAE, the Bangladesh Election Commission plans to enroll voters in the UK and Saudi Arabia (The New Nation 20 Oct. 2019). Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
2.1 Description and Purpose
According to Australia's DFAT, "[t]he smart NIC is a machine-readable card containing 32 types of basic information about a citizen embedded in its microchip. It contains 25 security features including photographs and electronic chips" (Australia 22 Aug. 2019, 50). Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
2.2 Requirements and Procedures to Obtain a Smart NIC
According to the New Nation, a Dhaka-based newspaper,
[f]ollowing the data verification, the [Bangladesh Election Commission] will send its teams to the four countries [Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, UAE and UK] to collect biometrics – fingerprint and iris – of the expatriates. The Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) will be used in the NID server to prevent the duplicity of voters. Then the authenticated voters will be incorporated in the NID central server. (The New Nation 20 Oct. 2019)
Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Australia. 22 August 2019. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). DFAT Country Information Report: Bangladesh. [Accessed 19 Dec. 2019]
Bangladesh. 2010. The National Identity Registration Act, 2010 (Act III of 2010). [Accessed 29 Jan. 2020]
Bangladesh. N.d.a. Bangladesh Election Commission. "Enroll & Obtaining NID." [Accessed 19 Dec. 2019]
Bangladesh. N.d.b. Bangladesh Election Commission. "Validity of NID and Re-Registration." [Accessed 19 Dec. 2019]
bdnews24.com. 6 December 2019. Moinul Hoque Chowdhury. "EC Signs Up over 9 Million New Voters." [Accessed 15 Jan. 2020]
bdnews24.com. 30 October 2019. "EC to Begin Online NID Registration from Malaysia in November." [Accessed 20 Jan. 2020]
bdnews24.com. 21 September 2017. Moinul Hoque Chowdhury. "Govt to Fund Distribution of Smart NID Cards as World Bank Pulls Out." [Accessed 29 Jan. 2020]
The Business Standard [Dhaka]. 2 December 2019. "NID Errors! No Worries, EC at Doorsteps." [Accessed 19 Dec. 2019]
Business Standard [New Delhi]. 2 October 2016. "Bangladesh PM Launches Machine-Readable NID Cards". [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
The Financial Express. 19 November 2019. "Online NID Reg for BD Expats in UAE Opens." [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
The Financial Express. 6 November 2019. "EC Launches Online NID Registration for Expats." [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
The Financial Express. 1 October 2016. "Smart NID Cards Distribution Begins Oct 02." (Factiva) [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
Identity-Cards.net. 13 August 2016. "Bangladesh." [Accessed 23 Jan. 2020]
Identity-Cards.net. N.d. "About Us." [Accessed 31 Jan. 2020]
The New Nation. 20 October 2019. "EC Plans to Send Team to 4 Countries." [Accessed 19 Dec. 2019]
United States (US). N.d. Department of State. "Bangladesh Reciprocity Schedule." [Accessed 23 Jan. 2020]
Additional Sources Consulted
Oral sources: Bangladesh – Bangladesh Election Commission, high commission in Ottawa; Centre for Policy Dialogue; Research Initiatives, Bangladesh; Welfare Association for the Rights of Bangladeshi Emigrants Development Foundation.
Internet sites, including: ecoi.net; EU – European Asylum Support Office, Public Register of Authentic Travel and Identity Documents Online (PRADO); Keesing Technologies – Document Checker; UN – Refworld, UNHCR.